Pilgrim's Pride to raise offer for Hillshire to $55 a share -WSJ

June 2

June 2 (Reuters) - Pilgrim's Pride Corp is planning
to raise its offer for Hillshire Brands Co a week after
it first offered to buy the maker of Jimmy Dean Sausages in a
$6.4 billion deal, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday,
citing people familiar with the matter.

Hillshire's shares were 2.8 percent higher in extended
trading.

The new offer would value the meat company at $55 a share,
according to one person, or more than $6.7 billion, the
newspaper reported. (link.reuters.com/mur79v)

The new offer escalates a bidding war with Tyson Foods Inc
, which entered the race just two days after Pilgrim's
offer.

Representatives at both Pilgrim's Pride and Hillshire did
not reply to an email outside of regular business hours.

Pilgrim's Pride, the world's second-largest chicken
processor, last week offered to buy Hillshire Brands in an
all-cash deal to expand its protein footprint with the latter's
sausages and lunch meats.